Neutrality's Empire

Reconciling Sweden's reputation for political neutrality and scientific prestige alongside its involvement in extractivist colonial projects exposes uncomfortable overlaps between these seemingly disparate ventures. In this illuminating reappraisal of the intersections between Swedish colonialism and its industrial history, Neutrality's Empire explores how Swedish actors--ranging from diplomats and business leaders to missionaries, geologists and engineers--leveraged Sweden's global standing to access valuable mineral resources across Africa and Asia. In doing so, this book presents a historical narrative which clarifies Sweden's entanglement with the forces of globalization, colonialism, and climate change.

Hanna Vikström is an assistant professor in History at Luleå University of Technology. Her work examines the phenomenon of resource scarcity in historical perspective, with a particular focus on Sweden's perception of metal scarcity and the country's attempts to secure critical metals through domestic and foreign exploitative initiatives. She has published extensively on topics related to the history of technology and the extractive industries.